Apparatus for deburring a metal strip

ABSTRACT

This invention discloses apparatus for conditioning the edge as by deburring of a continuously fed metal strip such as is provided in the slitting of a large strip into many narrow strips. Other strips requiring deburring occur when shearing sheets into strips. The burr or sharp edge or edges on said strip is removed by advancing the strip by a powered roller while at the same time bringing the edge in way of a rotating cup-shaped cutting disc or a scraping cutting blade. A non-powered deburring apparatus may be used with the powered apparatus so that its deburring means is brought in way of the other edge which is deburred in the same manner as the powered deburring apparatus. Rectangular and square sheets can also be deburred with the apparatus of this invention.

[22] Filed:

United States Patent [191 Persson [54] APPARATUS FOR DEBURRING A METALSTRIP [76] Inventor: Henry Persson, 224 Glenwood Avenue, Bloomfield, NJ.07003 Jan. 3, 1972 [21] Appl. No.: 214,680

[52] US. Cl. ..83/3, 83/425, 83/914 [51] Int. Cl "B26d 3/02, B26d 7/06[58] Field of Search....83/3, 425, 431, 433, 435, 914,

83/916; 51/78; 90/24 H, 24 D, 24 F 1 Apr. 3, 1973 PrimaryExaminer-Andrew R. Juhasz Assistant ExaminerLeon Gilden Attorney-RalphR. Roberts [57] ABSTRACT This invention discloses apparatus forconditioning the edge as by deburring of a continuously fed metal stripsuch as is provided in the slitting of a large strip into many narrowstrips. Other strips requiring deburring occur when shearing sheets intostrips. The burr or sharp edge or edges on said strip is removed byadvancing the strip by a powered roller while at the same time bringingthe edge in way of a rotating cup-shaped cutting disc or a scrapingcutting blade. A nonpowered deburring apparatus may be used with thepowered apparatus so that its deburring means is brought in way of theother edge which is deburred in the same manner as the powered deburringapparatus. Rectangular and square sheets can also be deburred with theapparatus of this invention.

9 Claims, 12 Drawing Figures SHEET 2 OF 7 PAIENTEUAPRP; ms

I E J .H.

PATENIEBAPRIi I975 SHEET 5 OF 7 PATENTEDAPR 3 1975 SHEET 6 OF 7APPARATUS FOR DEBURRING A METAL STRIP BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1.Field of Art With reference to the classification of art as establishedby the U.S. Patent Office the present invention pertains to the generalclass entitled, Gear Cutting, Milling and Planing and more particularlyto the subclass of with means to convey work and particularly to thesubclass of with plural tools operative concurrently or sequentiallyduring a single pass.

2. Description of the Prior Art In the production of strip steel,aluminum, brass and the like it is a generally accepted procedure toslit the strip from a previously produced wide strip of material ofdetermined thickness. This wide strip is slit into a multiple of stripsof selected width by slitting equipment using circular slitting knivesand a mating support roller. The resulting strip usually has a thinsliver of metal projecting generally outwardly from the roller supportedside of each slit edge. These thin slivers are often razor sharp and arecommonly identified as burrs. These burrs or sharp edges must normallybe removed before the strip is sold or used so as to prevent injury tothe one handling the strip or to apparatus processing said strip forother products. Deburring apparatus is often provided at the slittingmechanism for if the burrs are not removed the burrs may affect theflatness of a rolled strip as it is wound on a spool.

Apparatus for performing such deburring operation is shown in U.S. Pat.No. 3,192,834 to LAINE as issued on July 6, 1965. Other apparatus isshown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,460,432 to PERSSON as issued on Aug. 12, 1969and U.S. Pat. No. 2,944,374 also to PERSSON as issued on July 12, 1960.In these and other known apparatus it is customary to use power drivengrinding wheels or plural scraper blades. Both methods leave much to bedesired as the grinding wheel and the scrapers both have a tendency toroll the burr to leave a portion of the burr or sharp edge remaining.

In the preferred embodiment of this invention the sharp edge or burrededge is brought to and through a. cutting station where either acircular hollow cutter is rotated to make a determined shallow cut atabout a 45 degree angle to the plane of the stock strip, or in analternate arrangement a full edge scraper is disposed to engage the edgeof the strip to shape the edge as required. Either as a power drivencutter or as a fixed scraper, the edge deburring apparatus provides apower propulsive means to advance the strip and where desired a seconddeburring apparatus to remove the undesired sharp other or second edgeof the strip. In using the circular hollow cutter on the full edgescraper the burr is directed upwardly toward mid-edge of the strip.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention may be summarized at least inpart with reference to its objects. It is an object of this invention toprovide, and it does provide, a power deburring tool for deburring orchamfering the sharp edge of strips of metal as the strip is brought toand past a rotating hollow-edged cutting disc.

It is a further object of this invention to provide, and it doesprovide, a pair of power deburring tools wherein like side and oppositeedges of a metal strip are brought to and past a pair of rotatinghollow-edged circular cutting discs.

It is a still further object of this invention to provide, and it doesprovide, a deburring tool wherein a circular cutting disc is rotated ata determined speed, said cutting disc being adjustable toward and awayfrom the edge to be deburred to provide a determined edge chamfer.

The apparatus of this invention contemplated the providing of aworktable having a guide or stop rail in which are removably mounted aplurality of carbide wear buttons disposed to maintain the strip in aprecise alignment on the table. These buttons additionally smooth orremove any feather edge left from the deburring provided by thisapparatus. A pair of opposed rollers, the upper of which is adjustable,is cooperatively positioned with the worktable so as to grip the stripwith one of the rollers being driven at a determined speed to advancethe strip in way of a chamfering or edge trimming member. In thepreferred embodiment the chamfering member is a hollow-edged circulardisc driven by a motor so that a sharp cutting edge is presented to theadvancing strip. A scraper member may be used in place of the powerdriven cutter. Where both edges of the strip are to be deburred andformed, a second apparatus having opposed rollers but no power drivenmeans is provided. In all arrangements the burr edge is removed so thatthe applied force is upwardly and toward the guide or stop rail.

In addition to the above summary the following disclosure is detailed toinsure adequacy and aid in understanding of the invention. Thisdisclosure, however, is not intended to prejudice that purpose of apatent which is to cover each new inventive concept therein no matterhow it may later be disguised by variations in form or additions offurther improvements. For this reason there has been chosen a specificembodiment of the apparatus for deburring a metal strip as adopted foruse in removing the sharp edge from either one or both edges and showinga preferred means for advancing the strip. This specific embodiment andan alternate embodiment of a contoured tool cutter has been chosen forthe purpose of illustration and description as shown in the accompanyingdrawings wherein:

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 represents a side view of apreferred embodiment of an edge deburring apparatus in which the stripstock is advanced by means of a power-driven roller adjustably movabletoward a fixed supporting roller;

FIG. 2 represents a top or plan view of the apparatus of FIG. 1 the viewbeing slightly enlarged and taken on the line 2-2 and looking in thedirection of the arrows;

FIG. 3 represents an end view of the apparatus of FIGS. 1 and 2 andshowing in particular a roller chain drive for a rotating cutter withthe guard for the chain removed, the view taken on the line 3-3 andlooking in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 4 represents a side view, partly in section and showing theapparatus of FIG. 3 in a partly diagrammatic manner, the viewparticularly disclosing the preferred construction of the power-driveroller and the bottom support roller in relation to the power-actuatedcorner trimming apparatus;

FIG. 5 represents a partly diagrammatic sectional view showing a supportbracket and a mechanism for moving the power-driven cutter back andforth into and away from the edge of the stock being trimmed;

FIG. 6 represents a fragmentary and enlarged-sectional view showing thepreferred construction of the cup-shaped circular disc of thisinvention;

FIG. 7 represents a plan or face view of the cupshaped circular disc asshown in FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 represents a partly diagrammatic side view of an alternatearrangement whereby a scraper-like cutter forms a determined contourededge on the strip material;

FIG. 9 represents a side view of an alternate edge trimming apparatussimilar to that of FIG. 1 but with this apparatus having no poweredrollers and with both rollers being freely rotatable;

FIG. 10 represents a plan view which is also partly diagrammatic in thatan upper portion of the apparatus of FIG. 9 is removed to show the drivearrangement for the circular cutter;

FIG. 11 represents an end view of the apparatus of FIGS. 9 and 10 with acover or guard portion removed to show the internal arrangement of thecutter drive, and

FIG. 12 represents a schematic plan view in reduced scale and showingthe contemplated relationship of the apparatus of FIG. 1 and 9 asarranged to trim and deburr both edges of a metallic strip.

In the following description and in the claims various details will beidentified by specific names for convenience. These names, however, areintended to be generic in their application. Corresponding referencecharacters refer to like members throughout the several figures of thedrawings.

The drawings accompanying, and forming part of, this specificationdisclose certain details of construction for the purposeof explanationof the broader aspects of the invention, but it should be understoodthat structural details may be modified in various respects withoutdeparture from the concept and principles of the invention and that theinvention may be incorporated in other structural forms than shown.

DESCRIPTION OF THE POWER-DRIVEN EDGE TRIMMER Referring now in particularto the deburring apparatus of FIGS. 1 through 8 and more particularly toFIG. 1 it is to be noted that the apparatus is carried upon a base andmounted on this base is a pair of supports 22 which carry a table 24.This table is constructed so as to have an inner stop edge or face 25into which are mounted a plurality of equally spaced hardened inserts27. These inserts may be of carbide and the like and are madereplaceable to accommodate wear. As they are disposed in the supportstop edge or facing edge 25 the inserts establish an alignment for thestrip as it is carried on the table. As they become worn they areadjusted to maintain this edge until excessive wear from the sharp edgeof sheared or slitted stripv stock require replacement. If no wearprotection is provided the rough sharp edges of the strip readily wearaway the infeeding portion of the stop edge and any remaining edgecreated by the deburring operation will wear the trailing stop edgeunless protected by the inserts. The strip as it is moved on the tableis urged against the stop to insure an effective deburring operation ofthe apparatus. A lower roller 29 is carried upon and by a pedestal 30 asmore fully seen and described in conjunction with FIG. 4. On thispedestal the roller 29 is mounted so as to be freely rotatable onbearings carried by a shaft provided by the support 30. The face of theroller 29 and the table supports 22 are adjusted to bring the peripheralupper surface of the roller 29 into coincidence with the support surfaceof the table 24.

An upper roller 32 is carried by a clamp or bracket portion of an arm 34whose left end is supported by a pivot pin 35. This pin is mounted in asupport stanchion 36 fastened to the base 20. The arm 34 is adapted tobe lifted around pin 35 so that the face of the roller 32 is preciselypositioned above the support surface of table 24. This space is adjustedto permit the upper roller to grip a strip between the opposed faces oflower and upper rollers. A guard 40 is adjustable positioned around theupper roller cover portion of wheel 32 so that after the trimming of anedge of the strip of materia] the removed portions are prevented fromflying toward the operator. A hold-down screw 42 is formed with swiveledand knurled upper handle having a shoulder adapted to engage a groove orcutout in the arm and retain the arm 34 in its lowered adjustedcondition. A spring member, not shown, is'carried in support 43 and isadapted to provide a determined bias while permitting the screw 42 to beurged upwardly. A stop screw 44 also has a knurled knob end and isadapted to limit the downward movement of and prevent the arm 34 fromdropping below a determined lower limit. The adjusted screws 42 and 44allow the arm to be brought into a determined position so that theroller 32 engages and pulls the strip of material through the deburringapparatus.

Referring now in particular to FIG. 2 it is to be noted that table 24has a middle portion 46 between two grooved portions in which aremounted replaceable wear strip portions 47 and 48. These portions 46 and48 are disposed to receive and support the material as it is fed throughthe apparatus. Usually these portions are of brass to prevent marking ofstainless and aluminum material. A gear motor 50 is disposed to drivethe upper roller 32 which as seen in FIG. 1 is rotated in the clockwisedirection. The support and motor drive of upper roller 32 is seen inmore detail in FIG. 4 to be hereinafter more fully described.

Referring now in particular to FIG. 3 it is to be noted that a gearmotor 52 carried by and attached to the base 20 has a mounted sprocket,not seen, which is disposed to drive a roller chain 54. The moving chain54 is carried on and engages a sprocket not seen in FIG. 3. As thissprocket is rotated it also rotates a cutter 56 carried by support block58. This support block is movable in guides formed in the support base30. A knurled hand screw 62 is disposed to pass through a slot 63 insupport block 58 and when tightened to lock the block and mounted cutter56 in a determined position after a selected adjustment has beenperformed. This adjustment may be accomplished, at least in part, bymeans of an adjusting screw 64 carried at and in the lower end of base30. This screw is adjusted to provide means for limiting the downwardtravel of the block 58 until locked in position by hand screw 62.Clearly seen in this view is the upper surface of table 24 and the wearstrips 47 and 48 carried in grooves formed in said table. These strips,usually of brass or perhaps of plastic, are replaced as required. Alsoto be particularly seen is the hold-down screw 42 which is adjusted tolimit the upward movement of the upper roller and prevent the upperroller from lifting from the desired pressure engagement of the stripwhich is being deburred.

Referring now in particular to FIG. 4 it is to be noted that gear motor50 has its shaft 68 disposed to drive or rotate the roller 32 which isrotatably supported by means of ball bearings 70 and 71 carried on ahollow shaft portion of a flange ring 72 fastened to the foreportion tothe frame of motor 50. The shaft extension portion of attached flangering 72 permits all load or thrust of the drive roller 32 to be removedfrom the motor shaft 68. The shaft 68 is sized to fit in a bore formedin a front drive plate 74 which is retained on roller 32 by means of capscrews 76. A key 77 is carried in a keyway in the shaft and an inwardlyextending collar portion of drive plate 74. This key insures that as theshaft 68 is rotated the upper roller 32 is also rotated. It is to benoted in this view that the lower roller 29 is carried by a shaftportion 78 of support 30 upon which are mounted bearings 80 and 81disposed to carry and support the load of the roller. The roller 29 isretained on the shaft by a bearing retainer nut 82 and dirt is kept fromentering the bearings by a cover member 84 retained in place by means ofcap screws 85. It is to be noted that the lower roller 29 is recessed onits inner face at portion 87 in order to provide a clearance for thecutter 56 as driven by gear motor 52 as seen in FIG. 3. The axis of theupper roller 32 and the lower roller 29 he in a common plane in whichplane also is the axis of disc cutter 56. In this arrangement the strip,although traveling, is positively grasped and positioned as the cutter56 is rotated.

Referring next to FIG. 5 it is to be noted that disc cutter 56 iscarried on a shaft member 90 and is driven by means of a sprocket 92.This sprocket is engaged and driven by chain 54 and motor 52. Adjustingscrew 64 is rotatably retained in support base 30 and as it is rotatedmoves support block 58 up and down until clamped by means of hand screw62.

CIRCULAR CUTTER OF FIGS. 6 AND 7 Referring next to FIGS. 6 and 7 it isto be noted that the disc cutter 56 is preferably made with a carbide orhardened tool steel face portion 94. A circular concave recess 95 isformed in the face portion with the recess disposed to terminate at theouter edge of the cutter to form a sharp cutting edge 96. This edge iscircular and l as cutter 56 is rotated presents a new cutting edge toshaped scraper member 100. The support base 30 and cutter 56 are removedfrom base 20 and in their place a support 102 is attached to base 20. Onthe top of this support is mounted the scraper portion having adeterminedly shaped contour. The scraper blade is adjusted on thesupport so as to be in the plane of the axis of the upper and lowerrollers, and to be brought in way of the strip 38 which is advanced bythe upper and lower rollers 32 and 29 in the manner of FIGS. 1, 2 and 3.This blade is usually angled at a small angle to the path of the stripto provide some cutting action.

UNPOWERED DEBURRING APPARATUS OF FIGS. 9, 10 AND 11 Referring next toFIGS. 9, 10 and 11 there is shown an unpowered apparatus which is usedin those instances where it is desired to have both edges of the stripdeburred. When this is desired an unpowered edge deburring apparatus isprovided like that in FIGS. 9, l0 and 11. In this embodiment, basecarries support brackets 122 upon which is mounted a table 124 similar,if not identical, to the table 24 shown in FIG. 1. A lower roller 126 isfreely rotatable upon a support in the manner of FIGS. 1 and 4. An upperroller 128 is carried by an arm 130 pivotally attached by pin 132 to apair of supports 134 and is adjustably retained at its right end bymeans of a hold-down screw 136. The arm is limited in its downwardtravel by means of a downward limiting screw knob 138 providing anadjustable stop in the manner of screw 64 of the apparatus of FIGS. 1through 4. There is no power provided in this unit to drive eitherroller 126 or roller 128 as they engage the strip 38 to retain and guidethe strip on the table. It is to be noted that in the base 120 there areparallel slots 140 and 142 formed and provided for a purpose to behereinafter more fully described.

USE AND OPERATION To use and operate the deburring apparatus of thisinvention it is contemplated that a strip of metallic material such assteel which has been cut from a larger strip as by slitting is fed tothis apparatus for removing the sharp edges produced by said slittingoperation. Whether one or both opposite edges are deburred only onepower means is provided to propel the strip to be deburred. This sameapparatus may be used to deburr long pieces which are not wound ascoils. The present apparatus is also contemplated as being used inconjunction with a slitting machine as the strip stock is produced.

The strip of stock 38 is fed to the table 24 of the apparatus of FIG. 1and against the stop edge 25 is brought to and under the upper roller 32which is swung upwardly around hinge pin 35 while hold-down screw 42 isreleased from the right end of arm 34. Cutter 56 has been moved to alower, non-chamfering condition by releasing hand screw 62 andmanipulating adjusting screw 64. Roller 32 is now brought intoengagement with the upper surface of strip 38 after which the hold-downscrew 42 is brought into engagement with arm 34 and the screw 42 ismanipulated to bring the roller 32 into driving engagement with thestrip 38 as it is supported by table 24 and lower roller 29. Screw 44 isthen adjusted to engage a support portion so that the down adjustment ofthe upper roller 32 is established.

The disc cutter 56 is now moved by screw 64 to engage the edge of thestrip 38 by a determined amount after which the motors S and 52 arestarted. The gear motor 50 moves the strip of material while gear motor52 drives the cutter 56. As the stock is advanced the rotating disccutter presents a fresh cutting edge to the corner being chamfered.Guard 40 is adjusted to insure that any trimmed material removed fromthe strip is kept from the machine operator. The drive roller 32 andsupport roller 29, as well as the cutter 56, are adjusted to cause thestrip 38 to be urged against the stop 25.

The support strips 47 and 48 are maintained in a precise plane and theupper surface of the lower support roller is in the same plane. Theupper roller holds the strip stock against the lower roller and table toprovide a determined grip on the advancing strip. In the plane throughthe axis of the upper and lower rollers is also the engagement point forthe circular cutter. This enables a precise cut of the corner of thestrip to be made and prevents the strip of material from being displacedupwardly by the cutter. The rotary cutter is rotated so as to engage thestrip as it, the cutter rotatably moves from the table surface 24upwardly in an arc toward the stop face 25. When the shaper of FIG. 8using scraper blade 100 is used instead of the powered cutter 56, theblade 100 is positioned so that the shaping edge also lies in a planethrough the axis of the upper and lower rollers.

When both edges of the strip are to be deburred or shaped the apparatusof FIGS. 9, l0 and 11 are placed on the guide rails 170 and 172 and thestrip is fed to and between upper and lower rollers 128 and 1126, bothof which are free turning. Hold-down screw 136 is adjusted so that theupper and lower rollers have the desired spacing and cutter 56 is movedinto a desired chamfer position. After the apparatus providing the powerfeed of the strip is actuated, the second apparatus is moved on rails170 and 172 to provide the desired space for deburring the strip. Theapparatus of FIG. is clamped on the rails 170 and 172 so as to maintaina desired spacing of the cutters with the edges of the traveling strip.

In all circumstances it is essential that the upper and lower rollersgrip the stock in a firm grasp. The edge of the material is engaged bythe deburring tool at the precise gripping point so that at a particularpoint in time the strip is held in a vise-like manner while the cut isbeing made. It is contemplated that the deburring tool will remove thesharp edge by an upward cut which also moves to the stop rail. Anyremaining feather edge of material is brushed off by the movement of thestrip material over the hardened inserts 27. The upper and lower rollersalthough arranged as mating pairs are slightly skewed as to the path ofthe strip so as to urge the strip against the stop edge 25 duringits'travel along the table 24 or 124.

Although shown as some distance apart the powered deburring apparatus162 and the slave apparatus 160 may be placed near to each other. It is,of course, contemplated that the slave apparatus could have its upperroller powered as long as it would travel at a surface speed equal tothe other powered roller or the lead power roller is at a slightlygreater surface speed than the trailing roller.

Although primarily directed to the problem of deburring strips of metalit is contemplated that the powered apparatus can also be used tochamfer one or more straight edges of square, rectangular or otherpluralsided workpieces having a sharp or burred edge which is to beremoved. These edges may occur from machining, shearing, slitting orgrinding operation.

It is also to be noted that slave apparatus may be used where auxiliarypower is used to pull the strip. For example, the windup mechanism usedwith a reel to roll the slit stock may be used to power the strip ofstock. It is only necessary that the stock be positively advancedbetween the rollers which provide positive control of the stock.

The motor 50 which drives and supports upper roller 32 in FIG. 1 mayalternately be mounted on a support or base and by a V-belt drive, orthe like, drive this roller which would then be carried on a bearingretained arbor. The upper rollers 32 or 128 are contemplated as beingsupported so as to be spring biased toward the lower roller. This springmeans is disposed so as to prevent breaking or bending or the rollersupport when an over-thick workpiece is fed between the rolls. Ifdesired, the lower roller could instead be spring supported or athickness sensing means could be provided to eliminate the use of aspring.

Terms such as left, right, up, bottom, top, front," back, in, out,clockwise, counterclockwise" and the like are applicable to theembodiments shown and described in conjunction with the drawings. Theseterms are merely for the purposes of description and do not necessarilyapply to the position in which the deburring apparatus may beconstructed or used.

While a particular embodiment of the deburring apparatus and the cutterused therewith and alternates thereof have been shown and described itis to be understood the invention is not limited thereto sincemodifications may be made within the scope of the accompanying claimsand protection is sought to th broadest extent the prior art allows. 1

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for conditioning the sharp edge of a workpiece bydeburring, chamfering, shaping and the like, said workpiece being astrip, square, rectangular and like multi-edged piece of material, saidapparatus including: (a) a base, (b) a table carried by said base andproviding a workpiece support surface thereon, (c) a stop face portionextending above and along said table and secured thereto to provide afixed guide for the movement of a piece of material over said table, (d)a lower roller rotatably supported so that its outer periphery isdisposed in the same plane as the workpiece support surface of thetable, (e) an upper roller rotatably carried on an arm member pivotallyattached to a base-mounted support said roller movably mounted abovesaid lower roller while its axis lies in substantially the same plane asthe axis of the lower roller, (f) a clamp disposed to engage the arm andmaintain the upper roller at an adjusted distance above said lowerroller to provide means for positively gripping the workpiece as it ismoved therebetween, said clamp including a spring-retaining meanspermitting upward movement of the arm against the bias of the springwhen and as a workpiece thicker than the adjusted space is passedbetween said previously spaced upper and lower roller, (g) cutting meansadjustably mounted so as to be movable into the path of the to-beconditioned edge of the workpiece, said edge being adjacent the top ofthe worktable and the stop face and with said cutting means disposed toengage said edge to be conditioned at a point which is at leastsubstantially in the same plane as the common plane containing the axisof the upper and the lower roller, and (h) means for pulling theworkpiece over the table and between the rollers at a determined rate ofadvance while the rollers and cutting means are mounted so as to urgethe advancing workpiece against the stop face as the workpiece is movedover the table.

2. Apparatus for conditioning the edge of a workpiece as in claim 1 inwhich the upper roller is rotated by a motor means carried by saidapparatus.

3. Apparatus for conditioning the edge of a workpiece as in claim 1 inwhich the stop face is provided with a plurality of receiving sockets ineach of which is mounted an adjustable hardened insert, said insertsbeing retained so that their faces are aligned with said face to providea guide path for one edge of the advancing workpiece.

4. Apparatus for conditioning the edge of a workpiece as in claim 3 inwhich the cutting means is a rotated disc of hardened material having acircularly grooved face portion contoured to provide an outer cuttingedge, said rotated disc cutting the workpiece edge to be conditionedfrom its bottom surface to the edge in sliding engagement with said stopface and with any residual burr from said conditioning action beingformed on said edge intermediate the top and bottom surface, saidresidual burr being dislodged by a wiping action against subsequentengagement with the hardened inserts in the stop face.

5. Apparatus for conditioning the edge of a workpiece as in claim 3 inwhich the cutting means is a scraper bit having its cutting edgecontoured to desirably shape the edge of the workpiece as and when itpasses between the spaced rollers, said scraper bit skewed slightly toprovide a cutting angle with the workpiece while the cutting edge issubstantially in the plane of the axis of the upper and the lowerrollers.

6. Apparatus for conditioning the edge of a workpiece as in claim 1 inwhich the support surface is formed with a plurality of grooves intowhich is removably mounted brass strips adapted to support an advancingworkpiece without marking the engaging surface of said workpiece.

7. Apparatus for conditioning parallel edges of a workpiece as in claim1 in which there are two conditioning apparatus each carried by and ontheir own base and separated from each other with one arranged in a onehundred eighty degree relationship to the other and with one apparatuson each side of the workpiece with the stop faces of each spaced toslidably retain and engage an edge of an advancing workpiece.

8. Apparatus for conditioning both edges of a workpiece as in claim 7 inwhich the upper roller of the downstream apparatus is driven at adetermined speed to provide the propulsive force for the advancingworkpiece.

9. Apparatus for conditioning both edges of a workpiece as in claim 7 inwhich one of the conditioningapparatus has its base carried on rails andwith the ase movable on said rails so as to provide a selected spacingbetween edge conditioning paths provided by the pair of conditioningapparatus.

l l l

1. Apparatus for conditioning the sharp edge of a workpiece bydeburring, chamfering, shaping and the like, said workpiece being astrip, square, rectangular and like multi-edged piece of material, saidapparatus including: (a) a base, (b) a table carried by said base andproviding a workpiece support surface thereon, (c) a stop face portionextending above and along said table and secured thereto to provide afixed guide for the movement of a piece of material over said table, (d)a lower roller rotatably supported so that its outer periphery isdisposed in the same plane as the workpiece support surface of thetable, (e) an upper roller rotatably carried on an arm member pivotallyattached to a base-mounted support said roller movably mounted abovesaid lower roller while its axis lies in substantially the same plane asthe axis of the lower roller, (f) a clamp disposed to engage the arm andmaintain the upper roller at an adjusted distance above said lowerroller to provide means for positively gripping the workpiece as it ismoved therebetween, said clamp including a spring-retaining meanspermitting upward movement of the arm against the bias of the springwhen and as a workpiece thicker than the adjusted space is passedbetween said previously spaced upper and lower roller, (g) cutting meansadjustably mounted so as to be movable into the path of the to-beconditioned edge of the workpiece, said edge being adjacent the top ofthe worktable and the stop face and with said cutting means disposed toengage said edge to be conditioned at a point which is at leastsubstantially in the same plane as the common plane containing the axisof the upper and the lower roller, and (h) means for pulling theworkpiece over the table and between the rollers at a determined rate ofadvance while the rollers and cutting means are mounted so as to urgethe advancing workpiece against the stop face as the workpiece is movedover the table.
 2. Apparatus for conditioning the edge of a workpiece asin claim 1 in which the upper roller is rotated by a motor means carriedby said apparatus.
 3. Apparatus for conditioning the edge of a workpieceas in claim 1 in which the stop face is provided with a plurality ofreceiving sockets in each of which is mounted an adjustable hardenedinsert, said inserts being retained so that their faces are aligned withsaid face to provide a guide path for one edge of the advancingworkpiece.
 4. Apparatus for conditioning the edge of a workpiece as inclaim 3 in which the cutting means is a rotated disc of hardenedmaterial having a circularly grooved face portion contoured to providean outer cutting edge, said rotated disc cutting the workpiece edge tobe conditioned from its bottom surface to the edge in sliding engagementwith said stop face and with any residual burr from said conditioningaction being formed on said edge intermediate the top and bottomsurface, said residual burr being dislodged by a wiping action againstsubsequent engagement with the hardened inserts in the stop face. 5.Apparatus for conditioning the edge of a workpiece as in claim 3 inwhich the cutting means is a scraper bit having its cutting edgecontoured to desirably shape the edge of the workpiece as and when itpasses between the spaced rollers, said scraper bit skewed slightly toprovide a cutting angle with the workpiece while the cutting edge issubstantially in the plane of the axis of the upper and the lowerrollers.
 6. Apparatus for conditioning the edge of a workpiece as inclaim 1 in which the support surface is formed with a plurality ofgrooves into which is removably mounted brass strips adapted to supportan advancing workpiece without marking the engaging surface of saidworkpiece.
 7. Apparatus for conditioning parallel edges of a workpieceas in claim 1 in which there are two conditioning apparatus each carriedby and on their own base and separated from each other with one arrangedin a one hundred eighty degree relationship to the other and with oneapparatus on each side of the workpiece with the stop faces of eachspaced to slidably retain and engage an edge of an advancing workpiece.8. Apparatus for conditioning both edges of a workpiece as in claim 7 inwhich the upper roller of the downstream apparatus is driven at adetermined speed to provide the propulsive force for the advancingworkpiece.
 9. Apparatus for conditioning both edges of a workpiece as inclaim 7 in which one of the conditioning apparatus has its base carriedon rails and with the base movable on said rails so as to provide aselected spacing between edge conditioning paths provided by the pair ofconditioning apparatus.